Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1887-03-04
LIFE IN WILD SIBERIA.
How People Exist in One of the Coolest
Countries in the World.

10 ItODlt Xxi III One VI tnt
Countries in the World.
"In each cabin is the large fireplace,
which is used for both heating and cook
ing" said Lieut.. w. ii. Scheutze, who
has travelled in northwest Siberia. ''There
is seldom more than one room in these
cabins, and usually the owners cattle, if
he has any, occupy one end of the
in which he lives, being tied or prevented
from tramping on the babies by a bar.
The houses are commonly very comforta-
bic, but are awfully dirty. and smell
there is no word to describe it. Often,
until | got used to it. | would rather lay
down in the snow outside, with the Their
mometer 80 dogs. below zero, than sleep
in one of these huts. But you've no idea
what n man can stand when he has to-"
"Havc they windows in their houses?'
eyes; ice windows. They use ice as
we use glass. A clear piece is selected
about five or six inches thick, mortised in
the window opening in blocks two feet
and sometimes as large as four feet
square, and with water is made solid.
The water is as good as putty. When the
window becomes dirty they scfape it off
with a knife, and when it has been
scraped thin they substitute a new
pane
Doesn't the window ever melt?'
"Bless you. no; it is freezing cold that
far from the fire. If the room ever got
warm enough to melt the ice the Yakut
couldn't live in it, and would have to go
outdoors to cool off. At night the fire is
allowed to go out, as they have to econo-
mize in fuel. All they have is driftwood,
gathered on the banks of the Lena river
in the summer time.
How do they sleep: Do they undress
when they go to bed:'
''Always. They strip to their shirts,
which are made of thick sort of Rus
sian cloth. as heavy as our canvas. The
men and women wear he same kind of
garments, and never nave more than one
at a time. | took up a lot of thick flan-
mel for them. enough to last the rest of
their lives. and it will be a great deal
more comfortable thar the native stuff,
although they don't like it at first. When
they undrcss they get into hunks built in
the side of the house, sometimes a man,
his wife. and all his children in the same
bunk. They have reindeer skins under
and over them. and curtains of the same
hanging before the hunks"
do they ever bathe:'
"Never in their lives. They haven't
any word for bathing in their language,
and the im%possihility of keeping clean is
one of the greatest hardships of Arctic
life
"What do they eat?'
"Reindeer meet, beef-they have cows,
r11ear 1o,linr onin,n1e oho,t hn1f nc 1orpa
as ours, with a hummock ON their backs
like a camel-fsh, bread made of black
rye flour. tea. and an imported food made
Of chopped beef rolled into balls about
the size of a marble and covered with a
dough. These they pound up and ma re
into a soup. Then there is a wood that is
very nutritious when it is ground up and
boiled. Mixed with reindeer meat it
makes a good soup. They often eat Their
fish raw OF course. they freeze solid as
soon as they are taken II of the water,
and the native, particularly if he is on the
road. cuts them off in shavings as thin as
our chopped beef. and eats them raw.
They are palatable, and | have lived fol
days at n time on them, with a cup OF
coffee, made over an alcohol lamp, by
way of variety. The greatest luxury they
have is butter, and they will eat it by the
pound as our people eat confectionery. a
poor sort of butter is made from the milk
of a native COW. that looks and tastes
more Ike cheese, and they prize it above
all other classes of food.
THE amount of butter a native will eat
when he can get it, continued Lieut.,
Scheutze. lis astonishing. a friend OF
mine in Siberia told me of a man who ate
thirty-six pounds in one day. and ther
didn't get all he wanted. They have
way of pounding up a red berry and mix
ing it with butter, which gives it a beau.
tiful pink tint and improves the flavor,
Their drink is the Russian vodka, almost
pure alcohol, and they will trade theil
shirts for it. The liquor is scarce but ex.
pensive. SO they are necessarily a temper
ate people. '-Cincinnati Sun.